4 ms·

I don't really see a significant change here. Influencers today are like movie/tv stars in the past. They produce content to entertain. Young people want to b

I don't really see a significant change here. Influencers today are like movie/tv stars in the past. They produce content to entertain. Young people want to become influencers. So they want to become famous? Young people wanting to become famous is nothing new either

prox 4y ago
I think it’s the time when you are in still in school and you had classmates whose only ideal was to “have money”. Had no idea what to do or how to do it. Influencers kind of embody that.
- yieldcrv 4y ago
  I think the best way to understand this is that Gen Z life and prospects are more like The Hunger Games The ones that choose to do this are volunteering for tribute, go make their face known amongst potential sponsors, and go out into the hopeless world streaming it live hoping for the sponsors to send them gifts and be subscribed financially to the outcome Its not really as vapid and narcissistic as it otherwise seems It can be enough to make or break rent even with low success
  - wiseowise 4y ago
    > Its not really as vapid and narcissistic as it otherwise seems It is.
    - bawolff 4y ago
      Its as vaid and narscistic as any entertainment product is. Are you under the impression that hollywood stars of yesteryear weren't shilling stupid products to make a buck off their followers?
oarabbus_ 4y ago
Isn't that a bit overly reductionist? Cars - I don't really see a significant change. Cars are like [trains, horse carriages, boats] of the past. They provide seating for people to travel. People wanting to travel is nothing new either. Airplanes aren't so different from this lens either. But I don't think most people would agree that cars aren't a significant change from railroads or horse-drawn carriages. Likewise, one can become an influencer from their bedroom, quite unlike having to travel to Hollywood (or the country equivalent) to become a movie star.
- DubiousPusher 4y ago
  What's the implicit problem though with people becoming famous from their house in their pajamas vs becoming famous for being in a highly marketed movie? Can you be certain people worship actors because the actor cultivated a skill? Or rock stars? Maybe influencers are just laying bare the shallow intoxication of fame without a "skill" to mask what a lot of nonsense it is. After all, you can worship Odsy Osbourne and have a para social relationship with him. But if you really respect music, you can go down to your local bar and actually meet people who play nearly just as well but without the glitz and glow.
- wiseowise 4y ago
  Essence is the same: getting popular.
  - oarabbus_ 4y ago
    Right, just like the essence of a car and a horse-drawn carriage is the same: travel. While we're at it, carrier pigeons and telegrams are essentially the same as text messaging (communication), and using the same logic leads us to conclude a bow and arrow is not so different from assault rifles (lethal weapons). Come to think of it, it's pretty strange you can easily acquire a flare but not a grenade or nuclear bomb, they share the same essence after all (explosives)! Point being that "sharing the same essence" doesn't preclude a "significant change" between the entities. It's a reductionist fallacy.
allenu 4y ago
I think the big difference is that the means of production to potentially be an influencer is in the hands of everyone. It doesn't mean it's likely to happen, of course, just that it appears to be more possible. In the past, you couldn't just get on TV if you wanted to. We live in a very different world from the one of, say, 50 years ago. In today's world, there is a belief that all it takes to become successful is your mindset (i.e. ideas like "The Secret"), that coupled with everyone having the technology to actually reach people, I think gives the impression that anybody can win the lottery of fame.

prox 4y ago

I think it’s the time when you are in still in school and you had classmates whose only ideal was to “have money”. Had no idea what to do or how to do it. Influencers kind of embody that.

yieldcrv 4y ago
I think the best way to understand this is that Gen Z life and prospects are more like The Hunger Games The ones that choose to do this are volunteering for tribute, go make their face known amongst potential sponsors, and go out into the hopeless world streaming it live hoping for the sponsors to send them gifts and be subscribed financially to the outcome Its not really as vapid and narcissistic as it otherwise seems It can be enough to make or break rent even with low success
- wiseowise 4y ago
  > Its not really as vapid and narcissistic as it otherwise seems It is.
  - bawolff 4y ago
    Its as vaid and narscistic as any entertainment product is. Are you under the impression that hollywood stars of yesteryear weren't shilling stupid products to make a buck off their followers?

oarabbus_ 4y ago

Isn't that a bit overly reductionist? Cars - I don't really see a significant change. Cars are like [trains, horse carriages, boats] of the past. They provide seating for people to travel. People wanting to travel is nothing new either. Airplanes aren't so different from this lens either. But I don't think most people would agree that cars aren't a significant change from railroads or horse-drawn carriages. Likewise, one can become an influencer from their bedroom, quite unlike having to travel to Hollywood (or the country equivalent) to become a movie star.

DubiousPusher 4y ago
What's the implicit problem though with people becoming famous from their house in their pajamas vs becoming famous for being in a highly marketed movie? Can you be certain people worship actors because the actor cultivated a skill? Or rock stars? Maybe influencers are just laying bare the shallow intoxication of fame without a "skill" to mask what a lot of nonsense it is. After all, you can worship Odsy Osbourne and have a para social relationship with him. But if you really respect music, you can go down to your local bar and actually meet people who play nearly just as well but without the glitz and glow.
wiseowise 4y ago
Essence is the same: getting popular.
- oarabbus_ 4y ago
  Right, just like the essence of a car and a horse-drawn carriage is the same: travel. While we're at it, carrier pigeons and telegrams are essentially the same as text messaging (communication), and using the same logic leads us to conclude a bow and arrow is not so different from assault rifles (lethal weapons). Come to think of it, it's pretty strange you can easily acquire a flare but not a grenade or nuclear bomb, they share the same essence after all (explosives)! Point being that "sharing the same essence" doesn't preclude a "significant change" between the entities. It's a reductionist fallacy.

allenu 4y ago

I think the big difference is that the means of production to potentially be an influencer is in the hands of everyone. It doesn't mean it's likely to happen, of course, just that it appears to be more possible. In the past, you couldn't just get on TV if you wanted to. We live in a very different world from the one of, say, 50 years ago. In today's world, there is a belief that all it takes to become successful is your mindset (i.e. ideas like "The Secret"), that coupled with everyone having the technology to actually reach people, I think gives the impression that anybody can win the lottery of fame.